The Oedipus Cycle: Oedipus Rex / Oedipus At Colonus / Antigone (2002) - Plot & Excerpts
'Take these things to heart, my son, I warn you. All men make mistakes, it is only human.But once the wrong is done, a mancan turn his back on folly, misfortune too,if he tries to make amends, however low he’s fallen,and stops his bullnecked ways. Stubbornness brands you for stupidity – pride is a crime.No, yield to the dead!Never stab the fighter when he’s down. Where’s the glory, killing the dead twice over?”(Tiresias, the blind prophet, to Creon, king of Thebes, uncle of Antigone in ‘Antigone’ )Three very good decisions led me to finally read the Penguin Classic Edition of Sophocles’ three Theban plays: First and foremost, I have eventually decided a few month ago to take a course in Classical Mythology. This has always been my wish, but as with so many things in life it had been postponed for years. The course did not open Pandora’s box, it has instead enhanced my understanding of literature and art in general and given me new insights of how Classical mythology is part of our cultural legacy. Amongst others we had to read Sophocles’ ‘Oedipus the King’. I knew, somewhere in my house I would find a battered, yellow Reclam edition in German: This work by Sophocles is a set book for almost every high school student here in Zurich. On the spur of a moment I decided, however, to read not only this well-known play, but to add the two other Theban Plays: ‘Antigone’ and ‘Oedipus at Colonus’. This was my second good decision. My third brave decision was to read these plays in an English translation instead of a German one, mostly because I could not find any decent new translation into German. This is how I came into the possession of a brand new copy of the Penguin Classic Edition, translated by Robert Fagles (Professor of Comparative Literature, Emeritus, at Princeton University) with introductions and notes by Bernard Knox (Director Emeritus of Harvard’s Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington). As so often with Penguin Classics editions, I fell instantly in love with the cover, depicting Gustave Doré’s ‘The Enigma’ (Musée d’Orsay, Paris): I cannot praise highly enough this edition and its translation. The beautiful and simple language is easy to understand even for non-native English speakers; the accompanying notes are clear and require only a basic knowledge of Greek mythology. They help to enjoy even more the compelling writing and subtle irony of the plays. If you have read ‘Oedipus the King’ years ago and are now ready to revisit this work, give it a try and read all three Theban plays by Sophocles. They consist of ‘Antigone’ (written ca. 442 B.C.), ‘Oedipus the King’ (ca. 430 B.C.) and ‘Oedipus at Colonus’ (produced after Sophocles death in 401 B.C.). Besides the beautifully structured ‘Oedipus the King’ the two other Theban plays about the idealistic Antigone and Oedipus in exile are no less captivating and have not lost their attractiveness. As all Greek dramas, Sophocles’ tragedies are based on myths that have been passed on orally. Bernard Knox explains:“The stuff from which the tragic poet made his plays was not contemporary reality but myth. And yet it did reflect contemporary reality, did so perhaps in terms more authoritative because they were not colored by the partisan emotions of the time, terms which were in fact so authorative that they remain meaningful even for us today.”(p.22)One of the best examples that these stories have the same powerful meaning as 2400 years ago is the quote mentioned at the beginning of this review by Tiresias to Creon. Nevertheless, I am aware that the modern reader of today has another approach to these works than the Athenian male viewer had (women apparently were rarely admitted to the spectacles). During my course I read several plays not only by Sophocles but also by Aeschylus and Euripides. Even though I love Greek Mythology and I am very much attracted to the Classical Antiquity, it has often been difficult for me to digest the misogyny of Classical cultures. Greek men do not seem to have been very comfortable around women. In several myths women are depicted as malicious, monstrous or even eerie. Monsters are often female. It seems that Antigone is a rare exception. Her integrity and humanity, which Sophocles describes so masterfully, makes her sympathetic to the modern reader. Oedipus might have been the hero of the male Athenian viewer (*), but I think Oedipus’ daughter Antigone is my personal hero of the stories. Let me thus conclude with a quote by Bernard Knox about my favourite character in the plays:“…her courage and steadfastness are a gleam of light; she is the embodiment of the only consolation tragedy can offer – that in certain heroic natures unmerited suffering and death can be met with a greatness of soul which, because it is purely human, brings honor to us all.” (p.53)(*)Heroes in Greek mythology were not basically good or moral persons; they could be quite the opposite. A hero could have a divine parent or being extraordinary in some other ways, he did not have to be a good man.
Jaylen AllenMay 12, 2015CommunicationsOedipusEverybody’s beliefs can be totally different, some people might be Muslim, Catholic Christian or some even just be superficial. In this case I am Christian, I believe that there is something more powerful than any man and I always will. In the book Oedipus the King by Sophocles, the people lived their lives based off of what an Oracle tells them. The Thebes people strictly live their life based off fate. The king and queen of Thebes never doubt the prophecies, anything that Oracle tells them they will believe to the fullest. The king and queen of Thebes went to Oracle. Once knowing Oedipus fate they decided to leave him in the woods for dead, because his fate would not do any good in Thebes.Fate is seen as the universal truth in the play Oedipus. Fate is something that is bound to happen no matter the circumstances, fate is something you cannot escape even if you hide in the deepest darkest corner. In the play Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Oedipus one day learns his fate which is he will kill his father and sleep with his mother who just might give birth to his child. After learning that Oedipus runs away from his adopted parents’ home so he would cause them no harm. Tragically he ends up crossing paths with both of his biological parents. The most corrupt part about this book is that the readers do not know which set of parents this so called “fate” is pertaining to. The truth always comes out, but will it be what you expect or will it be the unexpected?tThe Oracle of Delphi tells the king and queen of Thebes that they will have a child who will murder the king and sleep with the queen. When the baby comes along the kings breaks the ankles of the child and leaves him in the mountains to die. Someone finds poor Oedipus and then takes him to the king and queen of Corinth, these where the people who actually gave him the name Oedipus and raised him as their own. Once Oedipus get to the Oracle and finds out that his fate is to kill his father and sleep with his mother he goes as far away as possible. Oedipus crosses paths with both his real father and mother. Not knowing who they are Oedipus lives his life as anybody else would and ends up becoming king and Thebes.tThe play Oedipus is set in the mythical past of ancient Greece, in a kingdom called Thebes. Throughout the play you learn that Oedipus birth parents left him for dead in the woods, but leaders of another kingdom find them during their journey. Living with his adopted parents was not cruel at all, it was actually quite enjoyable. Although one day Oedipus decides to visit Oracle. After finding out his fate he fled to escape what would soon be reality. Ending up right back where he started in Thebes. Shortly after he arrived he became leader of Thebes. As some time passed Thebes was stricken with a plague that would not go away. The plague prevented harvest from growing and women could not bear children. Oedipus heard the people’s cries for help and was determined to help them. “I sent my wife’s brother, Kreon, to great Apollo’s shrine at Delphi; I sent him to learn what I must do or say to save Thebes”.(90-94). Thebes was only getting worse and when Kreon returned with the news to fix the plague they must fine Laius’ killer, Oedipus vowed to do just so. Even when he found out it was he who was the killer he still wanted to save Thebes.tLeadership has nothing to do with seniority or hierarchy. In eyes of many leaders are those that empower others. There are few qualities that make a person a great leader. These qualities include honesty and communication, which Oedipus had both. Oedipus never lied to the people of Thebes even after the truth unfolded. Oedipus cared for the people of Thebes that was not hard to infer. Then there was Oracle is who tells everybody’s fate, he can be compared to a fortuneteller. He is the one who tells Oedipus his cruel fate. Laius is the birth father of Oedipus, he believed deeply in prophecies so once he was told that Oedipus was going to kill him and sleep with his wife Laius would do anything to prevent that. Which for his time being he did.tIn Oedipus, the author uses dramatic irony. This is when the readers can predict from the foreshadowing. The irony is known by the readers but not the characters. Oedipus said “I count myself the son of Chance, the great goddess, giver of all good things- I’ll never see myself disgraced” This is said before he know that the prophecy has come true. The irony in this is at the end Oedipus knows and accepts that this is true. The readers can infer from the beginning after the Oracle tells the king and queen the child’s fate and he did not die in the mountains that the prophecy will be fulfilled.
What do You think about The Oedipus Cycle: Oedipus Rex / Oedipus At Colonus / Antigone (2002)?
What a brutal, awful world it was for the pagans. They believed in gods who, for no reason at all, sentenced men to arbitrary acts of inhumanity--even so designed as to be done unknowingly, yet with terrifying consequences.The story of Oedipus and his family is simply awful. It makes for an interesting story, but the fact that the Greeks believed the world was so ordered that such things occurred demonstrates their own spiritual blindness and willful ignorance of the order of grace and justice ordained by the one true God. Thanks be to God for giving his grace and forgiveness to the world that we might be reconciled to Him through his Son, Jesus Christ, and redeemed from the machinations of the devil.
—John
Sophocles really knew how to make a tragedy that's for sure.the first play plods along nicely and then you are hit with a real shocker, it is quite moving and you do feel for Oedipus.The second play was pretty weak, this may just be me struggling with understanding what's going on but it seems that Oedipus gets told a prophecy and then just carries it out. It feels like Sophocles was a bit stuck for ideas.The final play is back to being very good, lots happening and a crazy amount of death. I have not really read much in the way of plays but overall I did enjoy reading this. The parts by the chorus were very good at explaining what was going on and keeping you glued to the story.About this version of the book? It is missing one vital part, some background on the story, or maybe explaining some scenes just to help those new to the story. If you are reading this for the first time I would look for a different version which has a bit of a guide to it.
—Jason
Brilliant work on the part of Sophocles who was a man of wide experience within Greek society. These plays played a prominent religious role at the festivals and the tone of Antigone in particular seems religious to me. The gods' laws for the burial of the dead were transgressed and Creon has 3 chances to amend his unrighteous edict: 1. Antigone's plea, 2. Haemon's plea, and 3. Tiresias' prophetic warning. His heart eventually turns with the impending personal doom, but it is too late: He has at that moment stepped across the threshold and the tragedy unfolds in all its gruesome splendor. The play ends with the words: "Of happiness the crown And chiefest part Is wisdom, and to holdThe gods in awe. This is the law. That, seeing the stricken heartOf pride brought down,We learn when we are old." This and other religious sentiments from the play reminded me of certain Old Testament passages, e.g. "Fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom." Of course, the Greek play differs in important ways as well, and it may be that Antigone is also imperfect in her own absolutism and single-mindedness, as is Haemon in his anger. Creon also voices many sound thoughts on the nature of government and the state. Above all, this is a play about the tensions between interests and how absolute rule is perilous...and how the gods' will is ultimately the way to resolve these human tensions.
—Austin
